Muslim Americans and the Legacy of Imam Khomeini

The Tea House

The Tea House

The Tea House was a place in Ahwaz, Iran where the shah used to entertain dignitaries before the Islamic Revolution.

(It) was used during the Iran-Iraq war as a center where the belongings of martyred or maimed soldiers were brought. Women would separate these items, which included removing body parts from clothing, sheets, etc., then wash the items.

After washing, the women would sew them into different items or repair them, but the amazing thing is when the women finished washing, sewing/repairing, ironing, sorting, etc., the items looked brand new. They did not look as if they had been gathered from the warfront, nor as if they had ever been used before.

Text and Photography by Najah Siddiq

Glossary

Shah – last monarch of Iran

Ahwaz – city in western Iran

Iran-Iraq War – eight-year war that began when Saddam Hussein invaded Iran in 1980